Aug. 9: Full Moon. Called the Sturgeon Moon because that’s when this large fish of the Great Lakes, Lake Champlain, and rivers is most readily caught. A few tribes knew it as the Full Red Moon because the moon rises looking reddish through sultry haze, or the Green Corn Moon or Grain Moon.
Aug. 12: In the pre-dawn east, super bright Venus will be within one degree of very bright Jupiter. For reference, one degree is approximately equivalent to two widths of the full Moon. These are the two brightest natural objects in the night sky besides the Moon, so this should be quite spectacular.
Aug. 12/13: The Perseid meteor shower, usually one of the best meteor showers of the year, peaks the night of August 12/13, with increased activity several days before and after. An 85% full Moon will wash out some of the dimmer meteors. From a very dark site, typically there are 50 to 75 meteors per hour at the peak.
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